India on Monday condemned the 'heinous and cowardly' terrorist attack on a convoy of Sikhs in Afghanistan that left at least 19 people dead.
"We strongly condemn the heinous and cowardly terrorist attack in #Jalalabad today evening which resulted in the death of 20 innocent Afghans, including 10 members of the Afghan Sikh Community, and injured more than 20 persons," the Indian Embassy in Kabul tweeted.
"We convey heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and pray for early recovery of the injured...The attack again underlines the need for united global fight against international terrorism without discrimination and accountability of those who support terrorists in any manner," it added.
Meanwhile, the names of 11 Sikhs, who died in a suicide bombing in Jalalabad of eastern Nangarhar province in Afghanistan on Sunday, has been released by Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also condemned the deadly suicide attack. Taking to Twitter he wrote; "Extremely saddened by the bus accident in Pauri Garhwal, Uttarakhand. My deepest condolences to the bereaved families. I pray that those injured recover at the earliest. Rescue operations are underway and authorities are providing all possible assistance at the accident site".
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj also expressed her condolences to the families of the victims and said she would be meeting them on Monday.
"My heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims of the terror attack... We are with them in this hour of tragedy. I am meeting their relatives today at 6 p.m. in Jawaharlal Nehru Bhavan," she tweeted.
Earlier on Sunday, At least 19 people were killed, many of them Sikhs, in a suicide bombing in Afghanistan's Jalalabad province. The suicide bomber blew himself up in a market located hundreds of metres from the provincial governor's compound where President Ashraf Ghani was holding meetings.
ALSO READ: 19 dead in Afghan suicide attack, Sikhs and Hindus targeted
Among the 19 dead were 12 Sikhs and Hindus, while 20 people suffered injuries in the latest violence to rock the country.
Police chief Ghulam Sanaei Stanikzai told Pajhwok Afghan News that the suicide bomber detonated his explosives when the minority community members wanted to enter the governor's house to meet President Ashraf Ghani, who was visiting the region.
However, Ghani's spokesman said the president was still in Nangarhar but was "away from danger".
The attack comes a day after Ghani ordered Afghan security forces to resume offensive operations against the Taliban following the expiration of the government's 18-day ceasefire.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Taliban and an Islamic State affiliate are active in the province.
Sikhs and Hindus have long suffered widespread discrimination in the conservative Muslim country and been targeted by Islamic extremists.
The community numbered more than 80,000 in the 1970s, but today only around 1,000 remain in the country. Under Taliban rule in the late 1990s, they were told to identify themselves by wearing yellow armbands, but the dictate was not wholly enforced.
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